


Un-wanted

by Khaki_Duck, Kit419



Category: DuckTales (Cartoon 2017)
Genre: Abuse, Anxiety, Betrayal, Blood, Child Abuse, Child Neglect, Depression, Dewey Duck - Freeform, Heartbreak, Huey Duck - Freeform, Hurt, Lots of tears, Louie Duck - Freeform, Separation, Separation Anxiety, ducktales - Freeform, fostercare, fostercarestory, hurtful words, majorcaracterdeath, season 1 and 2 rewritten, trigger warning
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-09
Updated: 2020-12-15
Packaged: 2021-03-02 19:41:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 12
Words: 12,895
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24092272
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Khaki_Duck/pseuds/Khaki_Duck, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kit419/pseuds/Kit419
Summary: What if Huey, Dewey and Louie never met Scrooge? What if they did as they were told and never tried to steal the houseboat?
Relationships: Brotherly Love - Relationship, DellaandHuey, DellaandLouie, Dellaanddewey, DonaldandHueyandDeweyandLouie, Donaldandscrooge, Huey and Fenton (Friends), HueyandDeweyandlouie, Uncleandnephew, motherandson
Comments: 40
Kudos: 210





	1. A bid decision

**Author's Note:**

> This first chapter takes place right before episode 1 of season 1

It started on the very last day of school, Huey, Dewey and Louie weren’t exactly excited for summer; which is weird because most kids would be but to them summer wasn’t about going away on some amazing adventure, it was about watching everyone leave while you stay on the houseboat and play a bored game watching tv, worrying that Donald works too hard. It wasn’t exactly ideal.

“Where are you going for summer vacation?”Valery asked.

“My dad is taking my family to lusterworld! It’s going to be amazing!”

“Way cool!”Val said, “Dewey where are you going?”

“Oh us? Well...”

“Oh please”Derek said, “They’re not going anywhere”He then whispered to Val “They’re too poor.”

“That’s not true!”Dewey said defensively.

Derek argued back, “My dad says that your uncle doesn’t even have a job!”

“My Uncle Donald works hard!”He yelled again.

“Guys please...this isn’t nice”Val said.

“Oh yeah?”Derek laughed, “Where does he work?”

“He- um”.

“That’s what I thought”Derek said, he turned around to walk away when Dewey shouted “For your information, we’re going to cape suzette this summer!”

He turned to face Dewey “Really?”

Dewey suddenly grew anxious, he rubbed his arm awkwardly and replied: “Uh yeah..uncle Donald actually has friends there who are pilots”.

Derek and Valerie suddenly looked interested in what he was saying, “That’s really cool Dewey”Valerie said. 

“Oh please, he’s obviously lying”Derek argues, “There’s no way someone like his uncle actually has friends.”

“Well he does.” Dewey says.

“You better take pictures to back it up”Derek smirks, “You’ll look pretty stupid without proof.”

Dewey was a goner. 

___________________________

On the way back to the marina Dewey was desperate to find a solution to this problem, he can’t go back to school without evidence.

“Why don’t you just tell them the truth?”Huey suggested.

Dewey sarcastically remarked, “Oh yeah, I could just tell them that I lied and we really are as poor as they think and we did nothing interesting and that my self esteem begins and ends with other people’s Acceptance.”

“Yeah, sounds good”Huey said, despite being autistic, he understood the sarcasm.

“How about telling them that we had to cancel because uncle Donald’s friend got lice?”Louie suggested.

“Thank you Louie, that was actually helpful”Dewey said. 

“Why lice?”Huey asked.

“Nobody argues with lice”He explained, “Remember Claudia? She had lice two years ago and people still keep their distance.”

They walked into the houseboat and threw their backpacks on the floor (except Huey who put his away then came back for the other two) and then they waited for Donald to get off the phone, they wondered how can one guy repeat himself that many times and still be calm? But then they guessed he’d be use to it by now.

“Thank you so much, you have no idea what this means- I said you have no idea- I’ll see you Thursday”He said then hung up. He took a deep breath and smiled at the boys, “Guess who has a job interview?”

The boys congratulated him excitedly all at once, “Really? Oh my gosh!”, “That’s amazing uncle Donald!”, “I have a feeling you’ll make it this time!” Then rushed over to give him a hug. “Thanks boys”He chuckled, “I want you all on your best behavior for the babysitter”.

They didn’t like the sound of that. “Why do we need a babysitter? We’re mature enough to take care of ourselves”Louie said.

Donald raised an eyebrow.

“Ok, Huey is mature enough”.

“I’m sorry boys but I just can’t do that to you.”

Huey nodded, knowing exactly what he meant. Huey was perfectly ok with watching his siblings, it’s not like they were that much younger then him. But Donald meant that he didn’t want the boys to have to be alone. 

After Donald left Huey was a little lost in thought. His wished Donald would just trust them more, understand that Huey was completely capable of keeping their home in perfect organization and away from harm, it’s not like he’s never done it before.

“This is perfect!”Dewey shouted interrupting Huey’s thoughts.

“What is?”He asked.

“Uncle Donald? Leaving this Thursday for a couple hours? We can just go to cape suzette ourselves!”

They were silent despite Dewey’s excitement.

“What? What’s wrong?”Dewey asked.

Louie shrugged, “Cape suzette? By ourselves?”

Huey agreed, “Uncle Donald asked us to stay here”he explained, “If we keep pulling stunts like this, he’ll never trust us to be home alone.”

Louie nodded, “We’ll be eighteen with a babysitter”.

“But if we do nothing we’ll be forced to stay here in Duckburg forever. Is that what you want?”Dewey asked, specifically Huey.

Huey thought about it for a second as Dewey looked at him anxiously. “It would be nice to get out of Duckburg”He admitted.

“So we’re doing it?”

Huey definitely wanted to leave, wanted to explore the world and finally do something amazing but- “As amazing as that sounds we can’t.”

“Come on! What will it take to convince you?”Dewey asked.

“If we could get ahold of Uncle Donald’s phone we can text the babysitter a new address...”Louie smirked slyly, “And I know exactly where to send her”.

“Louie who’s side are you on?”Huey asked.

“I’m not on anyone’s side”He explained, “I just like schemes”He shrugged nervously.

“Guys...we can’t disappoint Uncle Donald again. Don’t you understand that we’re the reason he doesn’t have a job?”

“He doesn’t have a job because he’s too qualified for simple ones and he’s too scared to take a risk”Dewey said.

“He won’t take a risk unless he has to because of us and our safety”Huey said.

Louie and Dewey frowned, “I guess you’re right”Dewey said, he slumped down on the couch and pouted, “I’m gonna have to admit to Valerie and Derek that I lied to them to make my sad pathetic life sound exciting”.

Huey placed a gentle hand on Dewey’s shoulder, “If they’re your real friends, they’ll understand.”

“They’re not my friends, just people I wanted to impress and sadly never will.”

“I’m sorry Dewey”Huey said, “We can’t afford to take this risk.”

“So we’re never leaving Duckburg, we’re never going to do something amazing or heroic, we’ll never become known for anything. We’ll live, we’ll die and we’ll be grateful”.

“I mean- that’s how it normally works”Louie said.

“Guys come on, we can do all sorts of cool things this summer”.

Louie sighed, “Yeah, maybe we’ll go to funzos for the eight millionth time this year”.

“You like funzos”Huey argued.

“Boys dinner!”Donald called.

“I also like pizza but I get sick of it after a while”He said referring to the fact that they were eating cold pizza again for the forth night in a row.

Huey sighed as Louie walked away, he knew he disappointed his brothers today but unfortunately this was the right thing to do.

Nothing bad will happen if you just do what you’re told right?


	2. A New Job

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Takes place during season 1, episode 1

Thursday morning:

"Waaa get off of me! Agh!"

"Hold still Uncle Donald!"

"Good morning uncle Donald"Huey said preparing breakfast for everyone.

"You can't wear this to your job interview"Louie said throwing his sailor suit in the dish washer.

"Ah my uniform!"

Louie brings out his outfit of choice, "You gotta dress for the job you want, not the job you have...which is no job."

"Huey, don't touch the stove, you'll get hurt!"He warned, ignoring Louie's comment.

"But it's a big day and a big day calls for a big breakfast!"

"I'll get the iron!"He says happily throwing the plate away and pulls the iron out of the wall, knocking Donald on the head by accident.

"Ouch!"He fell on the ground, as Huey moved out of the way nervously "Stop helping me- and put on your life vests. What if the boat goes down while the babysitters here?"

They boys sigh,

"Yes Uncle Donald"Huey says.

"Why do we have to wear these now? We literally live on a boat and we know how to swim."

"Just do it ok? Where's that babysitter?"

The hope of her not showing up at all was unbelievable. Louie felt guilty and yet happy she was late until.

"I'm here Mr Duck. I'm terribly sorry I'm late, I had to feed my cats."

"It-it's fine, as long as you're here now..where's Dewey, Dewey? I'm leaving come say goodbye!"

"Coming Uncle Donald"Dewey complies as he drug his feet to the kitchen to hug Donald goodbye- Donald gave each kid a kiss and thanked Mrs Nesbeak for taking care of the boys. "Oh don't worry, me and the little angels will he just fine"She says.

"Still happy with your decision Huebert?"Dewey asked.

"We did the right thing Dewey"He said.

As soon as Donald drove away Mrs Nesbeak looked to the boys, "So what should we do first? I have puzzles, we can feed the seagulls off the dock, or I can teach you the art of knitting."

"I hope"Huey added.

Donald showed up to his interview right on time- that wasn't normal but it happened. He thought maybe today was going to be the day, he was finally going to have a normal job with a normal pay rate and the boys wont ever have to worry about anything again; they could move out of the houseboat and into a real house- no, that's too far into the future to plan for, for now he just wanted to accomplish the one thing he always wanted to: Finally save enough money to legally adopt Huey Dewey and Louie.

He promised himself that he'd wait until a whole decade before even considering it. Especially since he had no idea of Della's whereabouts, he also knew it would take a long time, but the boys needed to know how much Donald loved them and thought of them as his own kids. He had talked to the boys about it before but they said it didn't make much of a difference to them. And it may not yet but Donald knows how it feels to live with a stranger your whole life and never being acknowledged as anything more then just a nephew or a kid you're responsible for. And he never wanted the boys to feel that pain of being unwanted.

Their lives were finally turning around. Things were starting to change for the better.

He looked at his resume that was falling apart, to his left he saw someone's looked a lot neater and more qualified. He couldn't change what was on his resume but he could staple it to make it look more organized.

Later:

Stapled to the wall Donald continued to fight with the stapler until he heard the words:

"You got the job duck."

"Seriously?"He asked, his new boss nodded, "Oh boy- I'm a real accountant!"

"Accountant? That was filled yesterday, you're our new sailor!"

“Sailor?”

Donald promised he wouldn't go on any more dangerous adventures..but he can't just deny every single job he didn't want. He was good at this- for once he knew what to expect..he can do this right? For the boys, he'd do anything,

"Welcome to Glomgold industries! Now, what do you know about Atlantis?"

Donald finally got himself unstuck from the wall, "Atlantis?"

"You were an adventurer before. Tell me what you know."

"How did you know I was a-"

"When you're as rich as I am, you can find out anything. Now, you were saying.."

Donald thought about it...

"I guess that depends on what you want to know...."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

That night Donald got back home, checking the time: 9:30 pm. That meant the boys should be in bed. He's also seven hours late and had to pay for ten hours of service. Luckily for him Mrs Nesbeak doesn't charge that much.

He paid her what he could with the promise to send her the rest, "I'm sorry about the inconvenience"Donald said.

"Oh don't worry dear, the boys and I had a great time."

Donald honestly felt that hard to believe.

"When are you going on your trip?"She asked.

"Tomorrow, I'll be gone for two days."

"Would you like the boys to stay with me?"She asked.

"I'm not sure, I've never left the kids alone before.."

"Well you can always have them stay with a relative right?"She asked.

"If only.. I’ll talk to the boys about it. How about I call you tomorrow and I'll let you know."

"Alright sonny, goodnight."

"Goodnight."

Donald then went to check on the boys. He knew they never actually went to sleep while Donald wasn't there. They always stayed up long enough to say goodnight. He walks in and saw all the blankets over the boys heads- probably pretending for the sitter.

"Boys you can drop the act, it's just me."

All three boys got up to see Donald, "How did the interview go?"Huey asked.

"It went very well. But unfortunately I start tomorrow and I'll be gone all weekend."

They didn't like where this was going.

"So I've asked mrs Nesbeak to watch you over the weekend."

The boys faces dropped to frowns again.

"What?"Donald asked.

"Nothing"Huey said.

"It's just-"Louie started.

"She's boring"Dewey said bluntly.

"Dewey"Donald warned, implying what he said was rude.

"It's true. All day she's done nothing remotely interesting."

"That's not fair Dewey"Huey said.

Louie weighed in, “No he's right, she's really that bad”.

"Listen boys, I didn't want to take the job but we really need this. If we want to keep our home afloat, we all have to do things we don't want to do. Do you understand?"

They all nodded.

"I'll probably be leaving before you wake up. I'm really sorry it has to be this way but I'm out of ideas".

“It’s ok Uncle Donald”Huey said.

“Yeah, we understand”Louie added.

He wished he believed them. Kids shouldn’t have to make sacrifices for any adult. After this was over, Donald would get a real job and finally the boys could have a normal life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed this chapter, as the story goes it’ll get more interesting. Thank you so much for the nice comments and support. ❤️ It means the world to me.


	3. Adventure turned tragedy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoy, this honestly took me forever to finish.

As Donald has said, he left the next day before the boys even woke up. Glomgold didn’t pay much but it was enough to take care of the boys long enough to find a new job.

Throughout the day all Donald could think about was going home and seeing his kids, he’d come home and have them run into his arms, ask how it went and eventually asking if they had enough for something that wasn’t pizza or peanut butter sandwiches. They’ll order chinese and then would start their new successful life.

He loved the boys more then anything in the whole world. All he wanted for them was a normal life without stress or risky adventures, but instead he gave them a life of worry, still never really been kids, always worried about money, always wondering when’s the next move, a kid shouldn’t have to worry about that. Kids should only worry about homework and making friends, that’s stressful enough.

“Mr duck?”Gabby asked, “are you well?”

“I’m fine”He says.

She looks at him emotionless, no interest in what might be the matter, “very well.”

He hoped the boys were ok and having a good time at home with Mrs Nesbeak. They didn’t seem too thrilled with her staying with them at first but maybe it’ll work out for them after all.

_________________________________________

“That’s it Louie, knit one, purl two. That’s very nice.”

Mrs Nesbeak was boring but she wasn’t all bad, at least not as bad as Dewey claims. While they were in her care she tried teaching the boys how to knit. Huey surprisingly wasn’t interested, Louie guessed it was because he was worried about Donald, as for Dewey, he didn’t really have a long enough attention span to follow instructions. Louie surprisingly enjoyed it, it allowed his hands to do something and it helped him concentrate, and it gave him something to do while missing Donald.

“What are we making anyway?”Louie asked.

“Well”She said, “You can make whatever you want. I’m making a scarf for my granddaughter and her husband”.

“Cool”.

“You know, it’s not often that a youngling like yourself enjoys something simple like this. It’s all about the interwebs and the station players. Your generation never really enjoys making something. Tell me, what are your other hobbies?”

Louie shrugs, “I draw sometimes but I’m not any good.”

“That doesn’t matter dear, art is a personal preference. Do you enjoy drawing?”

“I guess”He shrugged.

“Then you keep at it. Maybe one day your small doodles will mean something to someone.”

Louie did his best not to smile at that, there’s no way he could ever do anything important, his brothers always say he’ll do something amazing but nothing Louie will ever do will mean anything and that’s final!

“You hang on to those”She says, referring to the knitting needles, “You mean it?”He asked.

She nodded, “I have plenty at home. Plus I’d like to see what you make, and when you’re done, visit me. I’d like to see it.”

“Thanks...”

_____________________________________________

Sixteen hours later and they finally made it to Atlantis, Donald began to realize that glomgold has no idea what he’s doing and if he didn’t help them, he might actually die.

“This shortcut leads right to the treasure, I don’t even know why I hired the rest of you. Good job duck.”

The other members of team glared but Donald didn’t care, the sooner he helps glomgold, the sooner he can go home.

Little did he know that wasn’t a choice. The minute thy got there glomgold grabbed the jewel and left, he back stabbed him leaving him in the chamber while the room flooded, “essentially I was going to use you as live bate in case Scrooge were to go after the jewel, but I find this much more enjoyable.”

Donald panicked, he has to get out of there fast, he needed to go home and back to his kids, no kid should have to worry that their parents will just leave and never come back. His boys always worried, the last thing he wanted to be was another Della.

____________________________________________

“Granny! Granny!”Webby Vanderquack yelled as she ran through the hallways to find her grandmother.

“Webigail darling, what’s the matter?”she asked.

“Look at this!”

“Snow, on the drake barrier reef?”

“First time in fifty years. Do you know what this means?”

“Webby...”

“Maybe I could go with him. I always wanted to go on a dangerous mcduck adventure!”

“Webigail,”She said sternly, “You’re not to disturb me mcduck. He’s a very busy man. Is that understood?”

“What if he-“

“Webby!”

She sighed “Yes granny.”

Do as you’re told and no harm will come to you.

____________________________________

Donald felt the water rush quickly to him. He was kissing air quickly, was this how he’d be remembered? Did he do or say everything he wanted to? Will anyone truly miss him? Thoughts of panic rushed faster then the water and that made it hard to concentrate. Slowly but surely the water was to his chin, he had to act fast or not at all.

“Hey team, I wanted to thank you for keeping McDucks nephew busy while I escaped with the jewel”, Glomgold laughed viciously.

Gabby grabbed the walkie-talkie from hack, “What are you doing? This isn’t the plan!”

“I thought employees are greatest treasure of all?”he adds.

“Don’t be ridiculous, treasure is the greatest treasure of all, that’s why it’s called treasure, Glomgold out!”

__________________________________________

“I can’t believe you like knitting”Dewey jokes as he climbs up to his bed.

“Meh, it’s better then being bored all day”Louie shrugged, “Besides I’m on a art slump.”

“When will we finally see your art?”Huey asks, “I hate how secretive you are.”

“When I draw something I’m proud of. So never”He jokes, resulting in his brothers groaning at him, “One day Llewelyn, one day!”Dewey proclaims.

“Don’t call me that”He shouted throwing a pillow at Dewey, but Dewey loved to push his buttons, along with everyone else’s, Dewey threw it back at him and so on.

“Guys come on”Huey says in attempt to stop them. He rolled his eyes at his mischievous brothers as he turned out the light.

“I’m glad uncle Donald will be back tomorrow”Huey says once he’s in bed.

“Yeah”Dewey said, “I actually miss him a lot, things are so weird without his overprotective nagging”He laughed.

Louie laughed too, “Yeah, I like Nesbeak alright but nothing compares to Donald.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Poor Donald. And more importantly poor boys! What will happen to them now? What do you guys think?


	4. The unexpected misfortune

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Huey, Dewey, And Louie’s lives begin to change drastically, and it just seems to get worse.

The night was unusually cold for Louie. In the summer it’s normal for the boys to sleep with only a thin blanket and be perfectly comfortable. It shouldn’t be cold, because the air conditioner was broken and it’s not like Donald has time to fix it. 

Louie can’t take it anymore and climbs to the top of the bed with Huey and curls up next to him for warmth, it’s easier then looking for another blanket and it’s definitely safer then Dewey who kicks.

“Louie?”Huey whispered, “You ok?”

“Yeah...”He says, “Cold.”

“Cold?”Huey laughed, “It’s summer, how are you cold?”He asked.

Louie shushed him in response. Huey sighed shaking his head, Louie doesn’t often admit his true feelings but Huey knew he just missed Donald. Where was he anyway? He should’ve been home hours ago. He had a bad feeling that something was wrong but he couldn’t figure out what it was. Being with Louie right now helped him bare that feeling so Huey was glad he was there, but it didn’t go away, all he could do was hope Donald was ok.

___________________________________________

The boys woke up that morning with the sound of talking in the kitchen, Huey thought Donald must be home, but something was still wrong. What was it?

The other two got up and they walked to the kitchen, to their surprise they found a police officer and another woman in a suit talking to mrs Nesbeak. 

“So we’ll see if there’s anyone who can take them . Preferably family members”.

“Those poor dears”Mrs Nesbeak said.

“Hello...”Dewey greeted unsure about the situation.

“Good morning boys”Said the lady in the suit, “Please sit down.”

The three of them glanced at each other confused. “What’s going on?”Huey asked, “Where’s Uncle Donald?”

“Boys...”She sighs then takes a seconds collect herself, “Your Uncle isn’t coming home.”

“What do you mean?”Huey asked.

She sighed sadly, “I’m really sorry. He’s gone.”

They thought about it, they couldn’t even move, they couldn’t even cry or say anything. It just didn’t make any sense. “What happened?”Dewey asked.

“He was working for a man named glomgold on a dangerous expedition and got caught in a explosion at sea.”

For a second they thought she meant that he left them willingly, they weren’t sure which was worse,“Did you find the body?”Huey asked.

She was surprised at the question but she still answered, “Sweetie, we couldn’t-“

“Maybe he survived”Dewey said.

“This isn’t a movie. The odds of him surviving are very slim. You need to face the reality that he’s not coming back.”

Huey and Dewey were about to say something else but then saw Louie’s face, “Louie?”Huey asked, he didn’t really have a question for him but he wanted Louie to know that even if Donald wasn’t there now, his brothers were. 

Louie didn’t make eye contact with Huey, he almost ignored him entirely, he couldn’t believe this happened, he refused because this wasn’t ok. He sunk deeper and deeper into his thoughts to try and escape from this horrible reality, not even realizing that he was doing it- he built up enough strength to finally ask “What’s going to happen to us?”

The lady smiled, “That’s why I’m here. Are there any relatives you can stay with?”She asked.

The boys thought about it and shook their heads, they had no relatives that came to mind except maybe Gladstone but they didn’t even know where he was. Their whole life just seemed to crumble before their eyes.

“Get something to eat then pack a bag with everything you’ll need”She says, “We’re going on a little adventure”.  
____________________________________________

“Mr mcduck, why won’t you take them in?”Beakley asked.

“Not now Beakley”He said.

“They are your family, don’t abandon them again”.

“Again? Beakley the best thing I can do for those kids is stay far away, I’m the reason they don’t have a mother and now I’m the reason they don’t have Donald.”

“You’re not responsible for Della and Donald’s decisions. You’re only responsible for your own.”

“I didn’t ask for yer input Beakley.”  
__________________________________________

Huey, Dewey, and Louie waited outside the Lisa’s office, they wondered what was going to happen to them. 

“Good news boys, your uncle Gladstone has agreed to take care of you while we find you permanent homes”She announced.

They didn’t smile, not even a hint of excitement, they love Gladstone and all but all of this was too scary to process right away, “Did you say permanent homes?”Huey asked, “With an s?”

Lisa looked stressed out, like she didn’t want to be the one to explain, she knelt down to their level and smiled, she was probably just trying to make them feel safe but it only made this situation harder for them, “Boys, you have to understand that we’ll try to keep you together as long as possible, but it’s just not very realistic. Nobody wants three ten year old boys in one house.”

“So you’re going to split us up?”Huey asked.

“No, of course not”She says, “I just, I want you to be prepared for the worst, just in case we have to”, even with her nice voice and caring attitude, there was nothing scarier, “Your Uncle will be here to pick you up soon, hang tight”.

She went back to her office and left them waiting, they couldn’t think about what to say next, “So uncle Gladstone how...fun.”

“Yeah, that’s got to excite you, right Louie?”Dewey asked trying to get a reaction from him. 

Nothing.

Not a word, no emotion whatsoever.

“Louie?”Huey asked.

They finally pulled him out of his thoughts, “What?”

“Are you ok?”Dewey asked.

“Are any of us?”Louie asked back.

“Hey kiddos”Gladstone said walking In. “You ready?”

They nodded and grabbed their bags and followed him quietly to the car.

“Looks like you’ll be hanging with me for a few days”He says, “is there anything else on the houseboat you might need?”

They shook their heads. Even if he went through the same thing, Gladstone wasn’t sure what he could say or do to help them now.

“Uncle Gladstone?”

“Yeah, dew drop?”

“Do you think uncle Donald is ok?”

He sighed, “I don’t know, but I hope so. He’s survived a lot worse then this”.

“He did?”Huey asked.

“Ok maybe not worse, maybe just as bad. He may be unlucky but he’s strong and stubborn. If anyone can survive it, he can.”

Dewey smiled, that single bit of hope would guide him through this whole situation. No matter what happened. He had hope.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

They drove to a casino only a few minutes away, Gladstone told the kids to stay close as they walked through the building until they reached their room. “Two bedrooms, what luck huh?”He says trying to lighten the mood, “Hopefully you’ll be comfortable here until..”

“Until what?”Dewey asked. 

Gladstone rubbed his neck anxiously, “I don’t know, until whatever comes next I guess.”

“Why can’t we just stay with you?”Louie asked, “we’re not that bad are we?”

“Of course not, as much as I love spending time with you, I’m always moving from place to place, partying and stuff, it’s not exactly a good life for a kid. Besides you’ll be happier in a real home, with people who care about you.”

“Like who?”Huey asked.

“How about your Uncle Scrooge?”

“Who?”Dewey asked.

“Oh, you haven’t met him yet. Well he’s nice, sometimes, maybe a little stingy but he’s alright. I’m sure he’d take you in, if not you could have a real family with a mom and a dad, it could be like an adventure.”

“Adventures are supposed to be fun”Dewey said.

“Who knows, maybe it will be. It’s about lunch time, anyone hungry.”

“Not really”Huey said, the other two shook their heads too.

“Alright, if you need anything, I’ll be in the other room, alright?”

“Thanks uncle Gladstone”Huey said.

He smiled and left, not exactly sure what to do, he’s taken care of the boys before but usually they’re so full of energy and excitement, he didn’t expect anything more but it hurt him just to see them so distraught.


	5. Things’ll get brighter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> New chapter! Yay!

“So how long do you have them for?”

Gladstone took a large drink. Despite putting on a face of hope all day, he was devastated to hear about his cousin, “Long enough for them to find the boys a better home.”

“Poor lil Donalds”Fethy said, he didn’t mean to but just saying the name alone was enough to hurt Gladstone. He and Donald never got along, but they had a lot of fun arguing and challenging each other, it wasn’t ideal but it was something Gladstone will soon miss. 

“So why can’t Scrooge take them?”He asked. 

Gladstone scoffed, “Because I’d know or understand anything about that geezer? He’s the one who left it to Donald to take care of the boys in the first place.”

Fethry nodded stirring his drink softly, “he can be complicated. Where are the kids now?”

“In the hotel room, they have tv, doors locked, and they have their phones in case of an emergency so they’re fine.”

“I don’t see why you can’t just keep them”Fethry said, “you already seem to know them well”.

“You too?”Gladstone asked, “Why don’t you just keep them?”

“I haven’t seen them since they were like two. Besides I have my own little ones to worry about.”

“Not sure krill is the same thing as having actual kids”Gladstone said, “listen, with me constantly moving around and touring, it just wouldn’t be fair on the kids, besides I’d barley know what to do with them.”

“You could always get a job”Fethry said.

“Now you’re talking crazy”Gladstone laughed.

“How are the boys taking it by the way?”He asked.

“Huey and Dewey are stubborn, they have hung onto the feeling that Donald made it and he’s coming back”.

“And the last one?”Fethy asked.

“You seriously got to learn their names”Gladstone said, “It’s Louie. He’s distant emotionally and physically, I’m not sure how to help him so I give him space”.

Fethry nodded, “at least they have each other”.

“Yeah. More then I had as a kid. They’ll be ok.”

“First Della and now Donald”Fethry sighed, “I always thought we’d all grow old together like the ya-ya sisterhood but you’re the only first cousin I have left.”

Gladstone sighed and nodded, “Yeah, I always kinda thought Donald and Della were immortal like Scrooge.”

“Scrooge is immortal?”Fethry asked.

“I always thought so”He says.

“Are they going to have a funeral for him?”

“Probably not, he didn’t for della.”

“That’s not right”Fethry says, “The boys should be able to properly say goodbye.”

“It may be for the best”Gladstone says.

“Maybe”Fethry agrees, “To the ones remaining, may we live longer and happier”Fethry says.

“To the ones remaining”Gladstone repeated.  
__________________________________________

“Granny, what’s wrong with Mr. McDuck?”Webigail asked, “He’s been locked in his office all day and he hasn’t even come out for meals, he had a board meeting today.”

Beakley fixed her granddaughter a glass of milk and a plate of cookies to lighten the mood, “Webby darling, something unfortunate has happened to Mr. McDuck.”

“What? What happened?”

“His nephew, Donald has sadly passed away.”

“Wait...”

“He was caught up in an explosion in Atlantis and he didn’t make it out”.

Webby’s eyes widened, She almost convinced Scrooge to go there, what if he were caught in the explosion too? He could’ve gotten killed and it would’ve been her fault. 

“Webby, are you alright?”

Webby nodded, “Yeah, I’m just- really tired. I’m going to bed”.

Beakley gave her a hug and kiss. “Goodnight dear.”

Of course she, like the boys, didn’t sleep well that night. Thinking about Donald and what could’ve happened to Scrooge and eventually realizing that Huey Dewey and Louie were orphans again. As wrong as it was, she wondered if they’d live in the mansion and they could all be friends. With that thought, she could finally sleep.

Everything was going to be ok.  
____________________________________

“Morning Uncle Gladstone”, Huey and Dewey greeted. 

“Morning kiddos”Gladstone says, “where’s Louie?”

“We tried waking him up but he refuses to get out of bed”Dewey says.

“I see, you guys ready for breakfast?”He asked mustering the best smile he could, this is how Louie greaves. 

“What are we having?”Dewey asks.

“Don’t know, your cousin Fethry is bringing it over. You don’t have any allergies do you?”

“None that would be an issue for breakfast”Huey says.

“Who’s cousin Fethry?”Dewey asked.

“He’s nice, works at a deep secret laboratory.”

“Really?”Huey asked.

“Yup, when he gets here you can ask him all about it. I’m going to see if I can get Louie out of bed”He says.

Gladstone walked in the room with no clue what to say or do. He could pretend nothing’s wrong but that would indicate that he doesn’t care, if he mentioned it, it could make the situation worse.

“Hey green bean, we have breakfast, you want something to eat?” Blissful ignorance it is.

He could hear Louie’s heavy breathing but no verbal answer. 

“Louie?”He asked.

Louie finally shook his head.

“Come on Louie, you have to eat something.”

He heard Louie sniffle, was he crying?

“Come on, for me?”

Louie finally got out of bed, he didn’t want to, but right now Gladstone was the only family he had left, the only person who would take them in, he can’t disappoint him. “Ok”He said.

Gladstone smiled and lead Louie into the other room, when they got there Fethry already let himself in and is chatting with Huey and Dewey.

“And then Hans did this really cool trick where he- oh hi gladdie!”

“Nice of you to let yourself in”Gladstone said.

“I brought food, I thought that counts as an emergency”He joked.

“You- yeah, that’s actually a good point”he laughed.

“Hi Louie, I’m your cousin Fethry”.

Louie smiles slightly but nothing else.

Fethry smiles back and continued his story. 

Gladstone put his arm around Louie as they all enjoyed Fethrys story, for a moment it was like the calm before the storm, they knew things wouldn’t get better from here, but they wanted to enjoy life for half a second.

_____________________________________

They had spent the whole day with Gladstone and Fethry, they went to the casinos, earned a five family discount to funzos for dinner, and they went out for ice cream for desert. It was a good day, exactly what the boys needed right now, a day where they didn’t have to worry about Donald or where they were going to live, a day to just be kids.

Gladstone tucked the boys into bed, still unsure about the protocol or how to take care of the boys but he was glad he could help them out, at least for a little while. “Goodnight boys”He said turning out the light.

“Uncle Gladstone?”Asked a small, obviously tired duckling.

“What’s up dew?”He asked.

Dewey rubbed his tired eye, “thanks for taking care of us”.

Gladstone smiled, “hey, no problem kid”He chuckled softly.

“If you change your mind, and you decide to keep us. It’s ok with me”.

Gladstone was about to say something but Dewey was already asleep. Gladstone sighed, it was all for the best. The boys needed a real home with real people to take care of them. He can’t take them in, it’s not what Donald would’ve wanted anyway.

“Are they asleep?”Fethry asked.

“Yeah.”

“The youngest, uh- Louie. Is he always so shy and lifeless?”Fethry asked.

“On the contrary, he’s usually very active and chatty. I mean, not as much as Dewey but around me he’s always been.”

“Him and Donald must’ve been really close”.

“They all were- uh are? I don’t know which term is right here. Huey and Dewey are so much like Della, remember when her parents died? She was in constant denial about it, always trying to make the best of a bad situation but Donald and Louie are the ones that scare me most, they’re quiet and distant, basically they shut everyone out and there’s nothing you could say or do to snap them out of it.” 

“They get it from Scrooge”Fethry said.

“Speaking of which, we need to see what’s really going on with him.” 

“Let’s call him tomorrow, I’m exhausted. Kids are exhausting”Fethry complains.

“Wait till you see them while they’re actually energetic”Gladstone laughed.


	6. Goodbye

Living with Gladstone wasn't perfect but it was kinda fun while it lasted. Lisa called Gladstone after a week of them staying with him and claimed to have found people who were willing to take the boys.

She picked them up that afternoon to take them to their new homes.

"Last chance to keep us here with you"Dewey says tears pouring from his face yet laughing so he didn't have to admitting that he's actually crying.

"Oh come on dew drop, I'll visit so much you'll get sick of me before you know it"He promises.

"Doubt it"Dewey says rubbing his face with his sleeve.

"Have I ever lied to you?"He asked.

"I guess not", Dewey shrugs.

"I promise, I'll still be here and we'll see each other plenty"He says.

Huey smiles, "Goodbye uncle Gladstone"He quickly ran into his arms forcing a hug, the duckling didn't even care to warn him first. "Thanks for everything."

Gladstone didn't expect it, though he should've, these kids were very affectionate. He smiled and finally hugged him back, "Bye kiddo", soon Dewey joined in, the whole situation seemed like Donald should've been there. "Bye dew drop."

All Louie could think of is what Donald would do if he were there, would he feel jealous of Gladstone getting so much attention or would he join in on this group hug?

Gladstone eventually lets go of the other two and they get in the car. Louie thought it seemed more like one of those creepy carriages they used to haul criminals in old movies, not sure where they'd go but for some reason knew it would be bad and they may not survive.

Gladstone walked up to Louie, placing a gentle hand on his shoulder, "What's wrong green bean? Not even going to say goodbye?"He asked.

Jealous. Donald would definitely be jealous, Louie thought.

Louie's done saying goodbye to people, he couldn't do it anymore, so he just shakes his head, doesn't even look at Gladstone.

"Come on Louie, it won't be that bad, I'll visit anytime I can"He says.

Tears started to fill Louie's eyes, he couldn't even pretend anymore. What was wrong with him?

"Hey"Gladstone tried turning him around to face him but Louie looked the other way, "I promise everything will be alright".

"Why don't you want us?"he asked as straight as he could without sounding like he was crying.

"Come here"Gladstone says pulling Louie into a hug he couldn't refuse. Louie wrapped his arms around him and cried openly. Gladstone has never seen him act like this, not that he blames him but he didn't know the right protocol.

Donald would know what to do, he was so good at calming them down. "If I could take you I would but I can't ok? I promise everything will work out. You're going somewhere you'll be taken care of, a good home with nice people."

"B-but I d-don't w-want to g-go anywhere"He says, "I want to stay here, please don't m-make me", still crying his eyes out which made Gladstone consider it one last time, he remembered how scary it was when his parents died and he started living with a stranger, but it worked out ok and for his own good, it'll probably work out for them too. "Listen, I'd never let them take you if I didn't think it was the right thing to do. Lisa will take care of you and send you to a real home with people who will care about you."

"What if they don't?"He asks.

"Then Lisa will send you to someone who will. You'll be ok, you have my number in case you need me right?"He asked, Louie nodded as he started to calm down.

"We really needs to get going. We don't want anyone to worry"Lisa says.

Gladstone nodded then turned his attention back to the child who's face was indecisive, "You going to be ok buddy?"He asked.

Before Louie could say anything else Lisa grabbed his arm and lead him to the car, opening the door it and pushing him in. "Thank you mr gander, I'll take over from here."

All he wanted to do now was take the kids away from her, but he reminded himself that they won't be with her for very long and he knows that he made the right decision.

She started up the car and drove away. "Don't worry boys, you're all going somewhere safe."

Huey wanted to scream, he didn't like the way she said that, he grabbed Dewey's hand and wished more then anything that they wouldn't be separated.

But some wishes just don't come true.

Huey:

The boys were taken back to the foster care center and each were taken to different homes.

Huey met his new caseworker named milly, she was nice enough and seemed very interested in him, she asked a lot of questions about his life and personal hobbies, he thought maybe it was because she was actually interested or maybe because she wanted to make him happy. But she couldn't, nothing she could do can make him happy.

"We have a long way to go so do you have any questions for me?"She asked.

She must've ran out of questions. Huey vowed once that he'd never run out of questions, Uncle Donald once said that scientists never hesitate to ask questions and they ran out of them either, and that's what Huey wanted to be, a scientist.

"When will I see my brothers again?"He asked in a very demanding tone.

"Well,"She pauses to clear her throat, "That depends".

"On what?"he asked the same way.

"On your new parents, sometimes distance can be an issue but I'm sure it won't be too long"She says, "Plus you all have cellphones so you can call and text any time."

"Lisa said she'd try and keep us together"He says, "Why didn't she?"

"Lisa shouldn't have made any promise to you, I'm really sorry but sometimes it's easier said then done."

Huey has never been away from his brothers for longer then two hours, what was he supposed to do? What was he to expect? Was this new family nice? He couldn't take this stress, he was use to order, he needed structure, there's no structure in this! And nothing about this feels right.

Despite still having so many questions Huey stayed quiet the rest of the trip, milly isn't the type to keep quiet, so she played music and sang along to the words until they arrived.

"Here we are"She says, "let's meet your new family."

She stopped the car and moved to Huey's side and opened the door for him, he hesitates for a second before stepping out. The house was nice enough, it was white and it had a garden outside but the noise coming from the house that was almost unbearable. Huey covered his sensitive ears and tried his hardest to stay positive.

"Hello"Said a younger lady who seemed older then she should've been. She had nice hair and eyes, perfectly nice hair and bill but she had horrible teeth and was covered in wrinkles, first he thought she was in her sixties but now seemed more in her thirties. People are weird like that.

"Hello mrs Davis, my name is milly and this,"She pushes him forward, "Is Huey."

"Hello Huey,"She said slowly and almost condescending as if she couldn't speak proper English or maybe she thought he couldn't. "It's very nice to meet you."

"Hi"He said.

"Emmett! Lola! Come over here!"She yelled, Huey refrained from covering his ears this time to avoid being rude.

"What's up mom?"A kid who Huey assumes was Emmett asked, two seconds later a younger girl who was wearing a t-shirt with her name (Lola) on it.

"Yeah mom?"She asked.

"These are my lovelies Emmett and Lola"She said to Huey, "Kids, this is the autistic kid I was telling you about."

What did she just say? Huey looked at her when she said that and she smiled as if to say 'it's ok, we already know' he's autistic not crazy, this explains why she was talking so weird.

"Hi Huey,"Both kids say, Huey was still stunned and just waved.

"We also have turner but he's still an infant"She explains.

"Kids, how about you show Huey his new room while I talk to milly"She suggests.

"Ok, come on Huey!"Lola says.

Huey looked at milly as if to say 'please don't make me stay here' but she didn't seem to notice, he was stuck.

"Come on!"Lola demands again. Huey has no choice, he followed Lola to the other room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Hello everyone, thank you for reading this chapter, im going to try and update more regularly from now on, probably every other day or twice a week. we'll see. tell me how youre liking it so far and what you think will happen next, i love to hear your input! thank you for the nice reviews, Follows and favorites! they mean alot!


	7. A new kind of terrible

Louie:

He hated Lisa, he already decided.

She was supposed to keep them together, how could she do this?

She didn't talk to him much on the way there and when she did, he ignored her.

"It won't be much longer"She says.

He also decided he hated Gladstone, he should've taken them with him, how could he be so- so mean? Donald wouldn't have done that. To anyone! Let alone his own family.

He was starting to get car sick as he watched the sky through the window. He wanted out of the car but he also didn't want to go wherever she was taking him...

"We're here!"She said so happily that it made him feel even more sick, he refused to get out of the car at first. Lisa had to drag him out.

"Come on"She said.

Louie walked up to the house following Lisa, he wasn't as nauseous as before but he was feeling shy and uneasy, not knowing what to expect. It was even worse without his brothers, he wondered where they were or what they were doing. He was so terrified of what might happen to him, his brothers provided a certain comfort, if something went wrong they could help him through it. But now he was alone.

Lisa knocked on the door and a very serious looking woman answered,

"Hello"The woman greeted.

"Hello, I'm Lisa and this is Louie".

The woman scoffed as soon as she heard the name Louie. "I'm mrs Rüppell"She held out her hand to shake Louie's, "Pleased to meet you Llewelyn."

He winced hearing his full name which seemed to interest her for some reason.

"Come in why don't you"She says leading them into the house.

"Thanks"Lisa said in her annoyingly chipper voice, "It's very kind of you to take Louie in, I'm sure he'll be on his best behavior, right?"

Louie looked at Lisa and then looked away refusing to answer. He didn't want to be here, he wanted to go home with his brothers where life was easier.

"No doubt"Mrs Rüppell smiles, "Is there anything else we should discuss?"

"I think we've cleared most of it on the phone plus it's not like you've never done this before"Lisa says.

"Alright then"Mrs Rüppell says, still smiling for no apparent reason.

Just like that. Lisa was gone. Louie didn't want Lisa to leave, he already decided he didn't like her, but he's now decided he dislikes Mrs Rüppell more and he didn't trust either or them.

Llewelyn.."

"Its Louie"He corrected.

She raised an eyebrow, her voice so deep and strict. She continued: "Louie, there is a certain way we do things here. We have rules and I expect you to follow them. Understood?"

"Okay..."

"First of all you will treat every adult here with proper respect. I expect you address Mr Rüppell and I as sir or ma'am. You will say please and thank you and you will not ask for more then we give you, neither will you take less, you will be grateful for what we give you, do you understand?"

"Yes.."

Her eyes widened as if he forgot something.

"Ma'am"He added quickly.

"Good. If and when you break our rules there will be consequences."

'If and when?' It's almost like she already knows him. "What kind of consequences?"Louie asked.

"You don't want to find out"She said which made Louie more nervous then before, "Next, you will have chores to do every day and I expect them done, you are not to go out, you will go to school then come straight home. Understand?"

He just remembered they were on summer break, that meant Louie was staying here all day.

"You will be enrolling in St. Mary Louis academy in September, not optional."

So now louie's going to a different school all together, did she know he had brothers? Louie was kind of scared to talk back to her so he didn't say anything about it, "I guess..."

"There are more things you'll need to understand but first let me show you to your room."

Louie felt like he was in one of those creepy gothic movies, not that he watches those often but he did watch them when there was nothing else on tv, he remembers one about an orphan being shoved into a scary room covered in red paint, it was haunted by the ghost of her uncle...

He should really stop thinking about it before it impacts his thoughts to the point of no return.

"You'll be sharing with our youngest boy Tristan, it'll be a bit uncomfortable but you're lucky to get a room at all. Correct?"

Louie wasn't sure what he was supposed to do, so he just looked away from her pretending he wasn't listening when really he was just scared.

"You will be on your best behavior while you are staying with us."She says, "We will talk more after dinner, get yourself settled, wash up and come downstairs."

He walked into the room after she walked away and couldn't believe what he saw, a crib on one side of the room with a one year old and a mattress with a single sheet and a pillow on the floor.

'Oh yeah', he thought sarcastically, 'Home sweet home.'


	8. Enemies and allies

Dewey:

Deweys caseworkers name was Marvin, he introduced him to his foster family called 'the Yunnans', luckily for him, they weren't too far from his old home, so depending on Huey and louie's outcome, they can still go to the same school.

"Nice to meet you Dewey, I am your new moth'er, and this is your new fa'der."

Dewey wasn't sure about calling them that, especially with Donald still out there somewhere, they never called him dad, so it really made no sense to call a random stranger that.

"This is Hannah, your new sis'ter"She said.

"Hey"He waves.

"Nice to meet you Dewey"She smiled.

"Yeah, nice to meet you too"He said happily.

"Hannah, you will show Dewey to his room ok?"

"Ok"She smiled. "You'll be in my brothers old room, I hope you like it."

He followed her to his new room.

"I hope you enjoy it here Dewey"She says, "I haven't had anyone here since my brother died."

"Your brother died?"He asked.

She nodded, "Two years ago, he was only fourteen. Our family was in great despair. But now we can move on and build our family once again."

"I'm sorry..."He said, wondering why she was telling him this.

"Don't be. It's natural. You're a great pleasure to be around. I hope that we can become just as close"She smiled, "I'm happy you're here Dewey."

She then left to let him settle in. The minute he walked inside and set his stuff down. Everything seemed so big... and quiet....he just seemed so small by comparison.

There was an empty desk for schoolwork, a tv with a video game system attached, he's never had one in his room before so that was nice. There was a fully made bed with basketballs on them, it was so big it could fit him and his brothers.

he started to feel a pain in his chest thinking about them. He had told them once that he wished he was an only child, he didn't mean it but he said it. And now it seems he gets to find out what that's really like.

With Hannah as an exception, but he never thought he'd feel that sisterly bond with her like she wants, but just a friend who lives there...

It was weird without Huey and Louie. And that never changed for him. He missed them every day, even when he didn't really express it.

He wasn't the type to bring others down because of his own grief.

Webby:

"Webby, it's supper time, dear"Her grandmother called like every day.

Webby heard her, but she didn't reply. She stared at a picture frame she "borrowed" from Scrooge, a picture of Donald, his nephew.

How could he just die? Just like that? He's the most daring adventurer of all time! (Not counting Scrooge of course)

"Webby..."Beakley said with her hand out, demanding she hand it to her.

She nodded and gave Beakley the picture.

"Oh Webby..."

"He was so young, and what about Huey Dewey and Louie? Weren't they living with him?"

Beakley nodded.

"I feel so bad for them..."She said, "I couldn't imagine loosing you like that."

"Don't day that. You won't loose me."

"But Donald was the greatest adventurer of all time, Mr mcduck said so-"

"He's not always that honest"She says.

"Where are they now?"She asked.

"The boys?"She asked and Webby nodded. "I don't know...probably with another relative, they'll be fine."

She nodded again as more tears fell down her face.

"Oh darling, you can't let this crush your spirits. Why don't you go out and get some fresh air."

"By myself?"She asked.

Beakley nodded, "I think it's time."

She hands Webby a pager, "Take this, and page me if you need anything, understand?"

"Yes granny! Thank you!"She hugged her so tight, tighter then she had in a long time.

She was going on an adventure!

_______________________________________

She wasn't sure where to go exactly, granny didn't exactly specify, so she went to the beach.

She walks near the ocean and takes a deep breath, it's exactly how the books say it is, it smelled of freedom and water.

She wished she had a boat, she could go on a real deep sea adventure, but that was fine, she can just take things easy today. She walked into the water to feel it on her feet. It ran a shiver down her spine and she started to feel more and more free. Then suddenly, her thoughts were interrupted by a voice...

"Someone's a little far from home..."

Webby almost instantly attacked her right then and there but stopped when she realized it was just a young girl like her, she had pink hair and an odd fashion sense. "Hi, I'm Webby!"She says feeling her cheeks go red, "I'm not that far from home, I live over at- wait, I probably shouldn't tell you until we know each other better, what's your name, favorite color, social security number, and your deepest darkest secret?"

"What?"The girl asked.

"I'm sorry, I talk too much when I get nervous, and you definitely make me nervous, not because you're Intimidating or scary, even though you are. You're really pretty, who did that to your hair?"

"Uhh...I did?"She answered as if it were a question or she wasn't sure, "I'm lena."

"Nice to meet you"She smiled.

"You too"Lena says slyly, "You're not like a lot of girls around here"She says, "You wanna have some fun?"

"Sure!"Webby says perkily, "But I have to be back around seven thirty."

"Not a bad curfew if you insist on it. Come on!"She says grabbing Webbys hand.

She felt so safe while still being so dangerous, Webby never imagined having such an amazing friend all her life.


	9. For the sake of a hamster

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jr woodchuck rule #445: A Jr woodchuck takes care of all living creatures.

Huey:

Huey tried pulling and pushing the door open but it was no good, he was trapped! In the dark, trapped! No escape, there's nothing he can do, it's already been 20 minutes! He's probably going to die here.

Nothing could be more terrible then this...

Except maybe having to live with complete strangers who think of you as much as they do a hamster. Which is also sad to think about because hamsters are great animals, which is why Huey's in trouble in the first place...

What was he supposed to do? When you neglect a hamster and don't feed it enough it dies...did she really expect him to let Gregory die?

They left the small cage in the corner of Emmetts bedroom, (Technically it's also Huey's bedroom but he refuses to call this place home) they haven't fed it in two days and the poor thing never got to run around because they never let it out of the cage. Mrs what's-her-name decided that Huey wasn't allowed to touch Emmett's hamster, why? Cuz he's autistic and he might hurt it. He wondered where exactly did this womans logic came from, especially when it's Emmett who's neglecting to feed him in the first place.

"Emmett?"Huey asked but Emmett was too occupied playing video games in the living room that he didn't hear him the first time. "Emmett!"He asked a little louder but not loud enough to disturb anyone else.

"What?"He asked in a demanding tone which made Huey wince for some stupid reason, "Don't you think you should feed Gregory?"

"Who?"

Huey blinked questionably, "Your hamster..."

"Oh, I'll do it later"He said, obviously Mrs Davis (Or Shannon) didn't pay attention to her son's cruel laziness. Come to think of it, it's worse then Louie, because Louie wouldn't let something else suffer for the heck of it.

"Emmett, you said that yesterday"Huey tried again.

"And I'll feed him when I want to okay?"He asked but Huey doubted it was an actual question.

"If you don't feed him, he'll die."

"Hamsters don't live that long anyway"He said.

Neither do idiots like you, but your mother still feeds you for some reason.

"Emmett?"

"Get lost and mind your own business!"He yelled.

"Emmett, I don't think that was your green voice, remember? We talked about this..."Shannon said.

"Fine. Huey, please leave"He said in a nicer tone which just made Huey even more mad.

"That's better."

'Better? BETTER? That wasn't better, that was worse! Tell him he's grounded!' He wanted to say...

She did nothing, Donald would've never let anyone talk to him like that...or anyone for that matter, Huey decided to feed the hamster himself despite what she said, he always tried to do what adults told him, but the hamster was going to die if he didn't do something.

Jr woodchuck rule #445: A Jr woodchuck takes care of all living creatures.

Unfortunately sometimes that comes with a price...

Every day Huey would take it upon himself to feed Emmetts hamster, it was only day three of the poor hamster eating when Shannon caught him and locked him in a dark closet for an hour.

Was it wrong? Maybe, but for once he was glad he didn't listen to an ''adult''. Even if he was scared of the penalty...

Tears started to fill his eyes, he wanted to go home, he needed his brothers...

He wondered about them sometimes, actually all the time. He hoped they were safe and not dealing with someone similar...or worse then Mrs Davis.

After She finally let the tear stained triplet out, she forced his head to look her in the eyes, which made him uncomfortable. "Apologize to Emmett!"She demanded loudly.

Huey took a deep breath, "I'm sorry you're a cruel monster who doesn't care about his pets"He said.

Where did that come from?

He never talked to someone like that before, at least not in a way where he meant what he was saying...

Huey isn't a bad kid...

"Does somebody need a longer time out?"Mrs Davis asked harshly.

Why was she so mean? He's ten, not four. He shook his head.

"Then apologize, and mean it."

He looked at Emmett with a scowl, he didn't want to go back to the closest and he definitely didn't want Shannon to think he's a bad kid. Even if he didn't like her, he did care what she thought. So he apologized and then continued to feed the hamster in secret.

The things we do for hamsters right?


	10. Getting use to terrible

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Authors note: (Thanks to Ihavenonamehalp Aka kit419 for co-writing the rest of this story with me. Check out their stories, they're really good.)

Louie:

Living with the Rüppell family was the worst thing Louie had or will ever experience.

The family consisted of:

Mrs Rüppell who was extremely strict, she believed that affection is something a child must earn and it isn't given freely, in fact in her house, nothing was free.

Mr Rüppell was her husband; he was an alcoholic who was also very old fashioned, believing the idea that woman belong in the kitchen, children should be seen and not heard, men can do whatever they wanted to them and they just needed to deal with it...

You can already imagine how much Louie and him didn't get along.

Despite the fact they're horrible people they have seven kids in their care, seven!

There was their biological children, (they had three)

the second oldest was a teenager named Grace who was 15, she's rude and kind of a bully but she ignored Louie most of the time. As long as he didn't bother her, she didn't bother him.

Their younger daughter Amber, was a lot worse, she was about two years older then Louie, (not even that old) she'd constantly bother him and make fun of him and blame him for things he didn't even do. He found the best way to handle her is to just hide and not react to anything she said. It didn't always work but sometimes she was too tired or even bored to keep trying.

And even even worse was the oldest named Alec who was sixteen....He hung out with his friends most of the time and wasn't normally home but he was still scary and Intimidated Louie to the point where he'd hide to avoid him. Anytime Louie were to cross paths with him, it didn't end well. He was allowed- no- encouraged to be like a second father to the "younger kids" and again, was encouraged to discipline them however he felt like.

Their foster kids consisted of:

Molly: a young girl the same age as Amber and was normally the one she'd mess with, because molly wanted to be her friend, she'd do anything amber asked her to, which by default made her not only a push over but a bully to him as well.

Jennifer who was only three years old. No description needed. She was annoying and loud and they basically let her do whatever she wanted.

And

Tristan who was only a year old, and with Louie and him in the same room- there was no way he'd ever get some actual sleep. Not to mention that they're not allowed in the bedrooms until night, they do their chores, then either stay inside or outside depending on what Mrs Rüppell says.

Louie slept on a mattress on the floor at night with only one sheet and a small blanket he brought with him. Everything else he had was in his bag. His phone, his charger, a flashlight, two extra hoodies, a toothbrush, his drawing pad, two mechanical pencils, and one of Dewey's warn out comic books he grabbed by mistake.

Sigh...

He wondered if Dewey missed it. He wondered if Dewey missed him. Or Huey? Where they ok? And when would he see them again?

Why was it so hard to remember them all of a sudden? They all literally have the same face; but sometimes their face escaped him anyway. To remember there was once a time he was wanted and loved...it seemed impossible now. The longer he lived there, the harder it was.

When Dewey and Huey were around, they kept saying Donald would come back, saying he was ok, saying that everything would fall into place and they'd be as happy as they once were... The optimism was nice, but now Louie wasn't so sure...it all seems too real for him now.

Tristan started crying again, nobody got him of course, why would they? 

Where is Gladstone? It's been three weeks and no visit at all! Is this what happens when you rely on family...?

Louie covered his ears to block the noice as best as possible, he didn't like it here, he wanted to go home...

Then he realized, there was no home anymore...

He needed to do something to calm down...

"Look to the stars my darling baby boys,

Life is strange and vast.

Filled with wonders...and....joys..

Face each new sun, with eyes clear and true..

Unafraid of the unknown....

Because...."

He stopped there.

Even if he wished it were different...

Donald was not coming back. 

And there was nothing he could do.

Gladstone, two weeks ago:

Gladstone felt bad leaving the boys on their own, but what could he do? Really? He wasn't Donald. He wasn't a parent, and he never would be (hopefully.)

They just wouldn't be happy with him...

He continued waking while he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his heart...

He'll still be there for them, if things get too rough, he'd take them back. But it's good to try new things to see how they work out. They're ducks, they're tough. They'll be fine.

It's been a week now...he missed the kids.

He worried for a moment: If Gladstone wasn't so lucky to be adopted by good people who cared about him...who knows what could've happened.

He decided, after his trip to Macaw, he should pay them a visit. But for now, he decided to enjoy the place while he still could.

He entered a casino and the manager greeted him, "Greetings Mr gander, I am toad liu hai. Let's test your luck."


	11. The flornstine’s

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hueys new happy family doesn’t seem so happy

Huey made one mistake...

He was sent away after one freak out.

What's wrong with wanting things a certain way? What's wrong with getting use to perfection?

Emmett, (who seems to live only to make his life miserable) Took his jwg and he threw it out the window. The book wasn't in its best shape, but the pages were luckily still readable. Huey however was angry and couldn't take it any more. Long story short, he was locked in the closet for two hours.

Later that week his caseworker showed up and told him to pack because they were leaving. Didn't say where, didn't say why. He just showed up and they left.

Huey hated the unanswered questions, his new caseworker wasn't the type to tell kids anything, whenever he asked, he just said it was "All for the best," and that he "just wouldn't understand."

The only thing he knew was he wasn't going to live with that woman anymore...

So at least it's over,

At least he hopped it was over.

Unless this family is a lot worse...

How much worse can it possibly get?

They drove to what looked like a desert, there was a small house in the middle of nowhere with a large fenced in yard and what appears to be a lot of kids. Maybe ten?

"Mrs florstine, this is Huey,"His caseworker said.

"Hello Huey, I'm Mandy Florstine and this is my husband Todd,"She greeted, "welcome to our happy home.

Huey found out very soon that this was not a happy home. It was a house in the middle of the desert surrounded by other kids who were only there so the "parents" could get paid.

They weren't allowed in the house until dinner, they stayed outside and drank from the garden hose when they were thirsty. They didn't eat lunch. Only a little bit of cereal without milk for breakfast and whatever they were serving for dinner.

The rules were odd but nothing too hard to follow. When outside Boys stayed on one side of the yard, and girls on the other. They weren't allowed to be near the opposite gender unsupervised. Which in some cases, this sucked. Especially for a girl named Mary Grace who had a younger brother named Jackie who was living there with her, after many years of separation. She worried about him a lot and took the blame for a lot of things Jackie did. (Broken dishes, stealing food exc.) One time for example, Jackie ran to Mary to show her a rock he found outside, when Mrs florstine found out, mary told them that she called him over and took the punishment for Jackie. Which resulted in her running laps around the yard until she twisted her ankle and then she was forced to do wall sits for an hour for complaining about it.

From then on Huey decided to watch over Jackie during the day, that included making sure he doesn't try to go near Mary.

He was very hard to handle, (lots of kicking and screaming and arguing) but every time Huey thought of giving up and just letting him do whatever he wanted...he thought of Mary and the way she was hurt. He never wanted to see her (or anyone else) like that again.

One day...

It was one of the worst days Huey could remember from that house, most of the memories were just bits and pieces, random flashes, but this one he remembered vividly.

The night before Jackie lied, but Huey wasn't sure what about. it's completely possible that he didn't lie at all and Mandy was just an awful person. (Which is something that has been proven true several times) anyway, whatever happened. Jackie was given a spoonful of hot sause and sent to bed without any water or any other food.

Jackie and Huey shared a bunk bed (the boys room was in the garage, there were six boys living there and there was no air conditioning, so the summer Huey spent there was hell.)

Jackie insisted on taking the bottom bunk for some reason, Huey didn't mind but secretly wondered why since most kids want the top. That night he found out exactly why...

"Mary!"He heard a excited whisper.

"Shh, take this and eat quietly,"He heard Mary say harshly, She said something else but it didn't really come through...

"But I didn't lie,"He said before Mary shushed him again.

She said something else but again, Huey couldn't hear it. He assumed she left after that, but he knew this wouldn't be the end. Mandy would find out soon enough that there was food missing, and huey didn't want Mary in trouble. But What could he do?

The next day everyone was outside like normal until he heard Mandy yell.

"Everyone get in here right now!"

All the kids ran inside, everyone was scared, especially Mary, she was in trouble yesterday, if this continues, who knows what Mandy will do to her.

"Which one of you brats stole food from me yesterday?"She asked.

Nobody answered, Huey looked to Mandy who looked visibly angry but she was also shaking.

"If nobody fesses up quick,"She says, "you're all running laps!"She yelled.

Huey waited...but Mary didn't say anything. She was really willing to get everyone in trouble like that?

Huey has no other choice, he didn't want to see everyone punished unnecessarily, so he stepped forward, "I did it,"He said.

"Since you've had your fill to eat,"She says, "you will have nothing else to eat for the rest of the day."

Mary looked at Huey confused but Huey looked away from her, he couldn't stand to look at her right now...


	12. Belonging?

Huey:

Huey opened his eyes after hearing a faint whisper, “Huey? Psst, Huey?”  
Huey noticed how early it was, the sun wasn’t even up yet...

“Mary?”Jackie asked.

“Shh.”

Huey decided to get up before she woke anyone else, “Mary, what are you doing here?”He asked, “If they saw you here they’d-“

“Why did you do that?”

He would ask ‘Do what?’ But that seemed pointless. 

“Huey?”

He rubbed his arm anxiously, “I- I don’t know. I just- didn’t want to see you get in trouble again.”

“I don’t need you to protect me,”She says. 

Huey didn’t say anything...

She sighs, “Just stay out of it ok?”

She started to walk off but Huey suddenly grabbed her hand,“Wait.”

She looked at him.

“Why don’t you tell your caseworker about how they treat you here?”

“You haven’t been in the system that long, have you?”

“Not really...”

“Well let me enlighten you,”She stays, “I promised my parents I’d keep Jackie safe, the only way I can do that is if I stay in the same house as him, they’ll separate us! They always do!”She says louder then she should as tears fall down her face, “I’m all he’s got. I can’t do that to him...”

Huey wasn’t sure how to help her, “I’m sorry...”He says, “I have brothers too, it’s not the same situation but...I do, in a way, get it.”

“Really?”

“I can try and help...”He says, “With Jackie I mean- I don’t know everything but I can learn-“

He was interrupted by her hugging him tightly without warning, that makes him jump, “Thank you, Huey.”

“Sure.”

Dewey: 

He barley slept at night. It wasn’t unnatural or anything, he’s always been a bit of an insomniac. but it seemed to get worse once he moved in with the Yunnans, there was something about having his brothers in the same room as him, something about the swaying of the boat, something about Donald kissing them goodnight that made the houseboat home.

This wasn’t the houseboat. It was too big, and dark, and lonely. All this time Dewey wanted things to be different. But now he just missed his family and wanted to go home. The way Huey would ask how he was in the middle of the night, the way Louie would ask what the weird noise he heard was. The sound of cars driving by, the annoying boats. Sigh...

He wondered where Huey and Louie were now...

He tried calling them but neither one answered. He called and called. Where were they?

Dewey: Goodnight guys I miss you 

No one saw his message...

The next morning Hannah woke him up, “Dewford, arise,” She said, “It’s almost six sleepy head.” 

“What?” he actually forgot where he was for a second until he thought twice about it, “Oh.”

“We’re making waffles for breakfast, I hope you’re hungry.”

“Yeah, ok,”Dewey said. She smiled and left him to get dressed. He was really hoping this was just a bad dream.

Dewey checked his phone: no one.

Maybe their phones died...or maybe they broke, maybe their foster parents don’t allow phones. Did they take their phones away? Was that legal?

Maybe he’s overreacting, he should just keep moving forward. 

“Dewey!”Mrs Yunnans called, “We have to leave in twenty minutes.”

Turns out they took Dewey to the music store to learn an instrument, their family is a highly educated bunch and Dewey wasn’t exactly the most cultured. They decided to teach him all they knew from art, music, literature, and even signed him up for cotillion, clearly he didn’t really fit in with this family, he didn’t want to live there, but he didn’t want to leave it either...what was wrong with him? 

He just wished Uncle Donald would come back already... he’s alive...he has to be...

Right?


End file.
